The Intersection of Sobriety and Entrepreneurial Empowerment

Episode 165: The Intersection of Sobriety and Entrepreneurial Empowerment

In episode 165 of the Sobe Vibes podcast, Courtney talks about waking up in sobriety and realizing the career she was in was not true to who she was! The great clarity!

Have you ever linked sobriety with business savvy? This episode marks a pivotal reflection on how sobriety has shaped Courtney's identity and propelled her passion for business development and coaching into uncharted territories. I'm opening up about the evolution from my lemonade stand days to the dynamic digital cosmos, where Sober Vibes' success story is just one click from igniting your own ambitions.

Navigating the online business landscape can be intimidating, but with the right approach, it's a wellspring of opportunity. I'm eager to show you how a purposeful presence on Instagram and other platforms has been a game-changer, leading to opportunities like book deals and beyond. This conversation is packed with insights and actionable advice if you want to leverage your online engagement for income, especially in the post-2020 economic climate. It's all about harnessing the power of digital visibility to open doors you never knew existed.

What You Will Learn In This Episode:

• Courtney's Entrepreneurial Journey
• Wanting more out of life and in a career
• Waking up with huge Clarity in Sobriety 
• How you can start in the online space today

Click here to grab my free guide/ebook for beginners, as stated in this episode
Follow Courtney's new IG account
Follow Courtney's new TT account 

Thank you for listening, and we hope this episode helps.

Reviews help the show. Please rate, Review, and Subscribe to the Sober Vibes Podcast.

Thank you to our Sponsors.

You receive 20% off your order with EXACT NATURE as a show listener. Make sure to check them out and support the show. EXACT NATURE: click here to shop and save 20% off with code "SV20." Free shipping on all orders! Please listen to episode 129 with Thomas White to learn more about CBD.

*California Sober* as a show listener, you will receive 20% off your order with Cycling Frog. Make sure to check them out and support the show. Cycling Frog, click here to shop and save 20% on your first order with code "SOBERVIBES2024" *Ships in the US only.

To Connect with Courtney:
Grab my BOOK
Follow Sober Vibes on Instagram
Apply for 1:1 Coaching with Courtney
Join the Sobriety Circle Community
Enroll in Next Level Sober Support Self-Guided Program
Join the women-only Sober Vibes Facebook group
Grab your Free 30-Day Sober Not Boring Calendar
Grab your F

Transcript

Courtney Andersen: 0:01

MUSIC. Hey, welcome to the sober vibes podcast. I am your host and sober coach, courtney Anderson. You are listening to episode 165 on this chilly January. I mean it is cold, yo, it's cold. It was like I don't know negative five degrees today this morning. I should say when is springtime? You know what I mean. Hey guys, thank you for tuning in today and this is the second to last episode of season four. So if you are a die-hired listener and you're like where the H is L-O-T-E, it will be next week.

Courtney Andersen: 1:11

My sister and I decided to do the L-O-T as the season finale for season four. I mean we really kicked some ass. I'm quite proud I said this in another episode that I'm going to have to add it up, but there was like 50 something episodes for season four and I never skipped a day. I might have been a day late posting one to two, but I never skipped a week of posting a new episode. So I really, really hope that this season, season four, these solo episodes that I have done have helped you in your journey. You know, definitely listening to the guests and what they have to bring and say and share. I hope those have helped. And, of course, l-o-t. I hope that has put a smile on your face as you've listened.

Courtney Andersen: 2:04

So today I want to talk about I'm kind of flipping a little bit of a gear here Because when it comes to the topic of sobriety and recovery, there's so much that goes on and through different states of time. Because, again, remember that this is a process, right, and in the beginning of this season four I really wanted to branch out and do like a series about business Because, if you don't know this about me, I really love business side of things. I love talking about it, I love developing new ideas and as I have grown in my own sobriety, you know, definitely sobriety isn't all of me. It's a part of me, right, and in sober vibes is this extension of me. But there's other things too that I love besides Bravo Television I love to talk about and love to help and this last year I have been quietly more doing some business coaching and my soul has really been speaking to me in the sense of starting to branch out into another venture which I am doing and that is really helping people on how to make money online and especially to with beginners and or two, if you have a brick or mortar business, to start developing your brand and utilizing the online space, specifically with Instagram. And I will be doing some podcast stuff as well Because in my journey just going to take you back on a little story in my journey I got into the online space in 2015.

Courtney Andersen: 3:54

Previous to that, I was always a dreamer and believer that I wanted to be my own boss. Going back a little bit further, I started my own lemonade stand. You know, I think I was like eight or nine somewhere between there, one summer and I've always had that. I've always looked at opportunities in different ways of how you can generate an income, just from the traditional nine to five, and as I have grown up, I've always had some type. You know, I've I've not, I've not just worked one or two jobs, but it's always been just yeah, I've worked more than one job, but I've never some of these. I've never looked at it as as like, oh, that was another job, like sometimes it was fun. I mean, at one point in time I was, I was cleaning houses when I was working in the medical field, because I did not get paid that much, and I've talked about this too on this podcast throughout the years.

Courtney Andersen: 4:54

But so at one point in time I was cleaning houses because that was an extra you know, a $1 to $200 in my pocket and I will tell you this, you can make a good living on in. People do make a good living on being their own boss and cleaning houses and I liked the schedule and you know, just like, all right, cool, I can do this on a Saturday afternoon, anyways. So I've always had that business sense and I think it too was was my mom was always had that entrepreneur in her and I watched her. So that was that was something that that I always admired from Deb. Of that hustle I I really try not to say hustle, but she just had that she had an inner man, she had Deb had that in her and did amazing things. So when I was sitting in the pain clinic, okay, I man and I were we're going to be married. You know, man and I had like a 15 month engagement and like during that time I'm like who the fuck is going to watch our kids when I'm working, like I had a girlfriend who worked in there and she had a kid and like she would just tell me how much daycare was right. So I would always be like dude, I just I don't want to just work at my kids and daycare.

Courtney Andersen: 6:16

Okay, and then 2015 and opportunity presented itself with I got into MLM. Say what you want about them, take, take what you want, leave the rest right. So that was my, my starting point and I I enjoyed my period of time in the MLM community with Beachbody Coaching because it got me into the, the health space and coaching and I'm like, oh my God, you can do this online, like cool. Then, therefore, I left the medical field. I'm going to get to the point of this. I left the medical field and started branch out in the online space with the Beachbody Coaching, health Coaching, forming my own community. And then I went back to bartending.

Courtney Andersen: 7:00

Okay, what I'm going to tell you is this that happens in sobriety or recovery. You wake the fuck up one day, right. You wake up one day and you're like, especially when it comes to your career, your job, what do you want to do with your life? So those first couple of years, right, I was just trying not to drink and that was fine. Then I moved on to then incorporating getting into better habits with nutrition and exercise. And then it was about year three. I woke up, because once you quit drinking, it just doesn't mean that you wake up one day. It is a process all within itself and everybody's process is different.

Courtney Andersen: 7:41

So by year three that is when I started to wake up and I was in a terrible work environment. Has anyone had any work trauma Like work trauma in that sense it's fucking terrible and in just working in an extremely negative environment, working for fucking pig people and I say that like it was just really my nurse manager. She was a big person and she was just I'm gonna laugh about it but like everybody has had that one manager where they're just like. You're just like dude, you're not a good fucking person. Seriously, you're a miserable human being and whatever is going on in your life, you are bringing in here and making it fucked up because you don't want to do your job. Okay, and I could go on forever. Took me some time to heal from that situation. Of course, sunday scaries was in it, right, I was a medical assistant, I wanted to go eventually into nursing and then at that point I'm like fuck this, I'm out of here because I didn't want to live in those walls of that nine to five and in such a negative environment.

Courtney Andersen: 8:55

During that process, though I get sober and woe to myself I get sober and woke up and was like this is not what I want to do. I don't want to do this. I do not, I do not. I do not want to do this. I don't want to miss out on moments, and specifically my why at that time was for my future children, okay, because it's like dude, I don't. I want to be at home for those moments and for me personally, that was huge. You know, I understand now in the mom game, like, totally fine, you want to work outside of the home. Everybody is different. Do do you right? This is not mom shaming, this is just my perspective that I wanted to do. I wanted to be at home for those moments, right Cause I was going to be a different type of parent than the two parents that I have in the process of raising a little human being.

Courtney Andersen: 9:47

So I left, got into the online space, did that venture? That online space then took me to a place where it was in real life connection of then evolving into sober vibes and what has happened with sober vibes, which I'm extremely, extremely proud of. And along the way in this space, especially on the online space. I have either self taught myself stuff and or enrolled in business coaches myself and programs and programs to help me develop these skills. Because I have to tell you guys that if you've been thinking about it like, alright, I have a passion, let's just say you. Let's just say, try to think of something good here, what? Okay, let's say you're a hairdresser, hair colorist, hair stylist I don't know what they call by now but you are a hairdresser, right, and you now want to be like alright, dude, I'm fucking getting over it.

Courtney Andersen: 10:52

This is the secondary trauma response job and that is in the silver circle, the sprydy circle. Well, you had a member there who was saying that those types of jobs are secondary trauma responses Because they're sitting there listening to people's bullshit all day and like taking on their energy, right. So if you have that type of job, you realize like, dude, this is exhausting. So you're thinking about it like I want to start transitioning where I don't have to take so many clients on, and how can I do this? Where then I can start making money passively, right, and take it online. Where then you could start.

Courtney Andersen: 11:32

You can go one of two ways here where you can start doing like tutorials, right, tutorials on how to do a blowout or how to do a curl or how to do an updo I'm just saying this or maybe even to process your home or process color your hair at Shalom by yourself, and then you can turn that into. Then, let's say, you used an Instagram account to start gaining followers to your page and then you can start sharing these tutorials and then you can create something in a passive way, like or where then you become an affiliate, where you could be an Amazon affiliate and share all the products. Or if those companies, let's just say Redken, has an affiliate program, then you start sharing those products and people order that off of you or they order it through the company and you get the commission right. So that's one way. The second way you can go of this is that you then start teaching people and consulting on how to run a salon right Of what you would need to do, or you teach hairstylists how to have better communication with their guests, and then you can get something in that manner right, like where you are teaching them more skills to be better in their business, or you teach them how to gain customers from Instagram, turn followers into customers, especially of those that live around you Get what I'm saying.

Courtney Andersen: 13:07

There's all different possibilities here, and so that is where I want to say that for you. So you're having this where you've woken up in your sobriety and you're like I just I can't do this for the rest of my life. I can't do this. I don't know how I'm going to do it, I don't know when, like, but I need to figure it out. Figure that out and I will say this I'm not telling you to quit your job today. So please don't, please don't take that. No, but we're going to wait. We are going to wait. You are making the. You are making a full time income If you go on the online route or branch your business, starting to branch in on the online route.

Courtney Andersen: 13:52

So please don't just be like fuck it, I'm going to quit my job and go all in, because I listened to Courtney's podcast. Do not quit your job. We like plans here, okay, especially when you're in sobriety. We're not going to, we're not going to fucking trigger you. You're going to wait and you are going to think of other ways. So again, if you have a passion project, like you love to cook you can create your own type of cooking show on an Instagram or TikTok. If you're like I don't want to be on TikTok, you can be on Instagram. If you don't want to be on Instagram and you want to do YouTube, it's all there and it's all possible.

Courtney Andersen: 14:29

People look at the. I don't think people understand how powerful the online space is and all of what you can do. And I have to say this to you that beach body coaching I still get paychecks today and I haven't touched that business. I fucking I kicked that business in the dick for years. I worked my ass off in that for years. And, of course, as we know that of how multi-level marketing is structured. And to a people who had just been my customer for years and they're ordering stuff, I still get a commission and that's not to brag, but that's the reality of the situation and that's me being honest to you of what you can do with passive income and utilizing social media to start doing your thing. You guys, right now is the time. It's the time.

Courtney Andersen: 15:21

I just read that digital marketing in 2024 is going to be the number one pain, job, career, whatever out of all of them, you can be your own boss. You can. You can set your own hours, put boundaries around it and just be like, okay, this is what I want to do. My girlfriend has a plant shop. She owns a plant shop and I tell her constantly I'm like you have to branch this out onto Instagram, dude, and just create a fucking page, say I get passionate about talking about this, about of make a page of just like gardening, one on one, and then do affiliate or tie it back to your shop, like there's so many ways you can go about that or attract the customers and let them know that you have an Instagram page and if they have questions, here you go. Here is how you grow a tomato plant, this is how you grow tomatoes for the summertime and when you should plant these seeds, and blah, blah, blah. Dude, I would subscribe to that. I would follow that page, because I don't have a green thumb and I hope one day that I do right. Hey, california Silver Peeps, this product is for you.

Courtney Andersen: 16:41

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Courtney Andersen: 17:56

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Courtney Andersen: 19:32

I'm just trying to spit out some stuff here to generate some ways for you to some creativity, to spark some interest or creativity, especially if you've been feeling this because post 2020, the times are now different. The work field is different, man it is different, people are moving different types of ways, like it is not the same than what it was in 2020, and people are burned out. People are burned out. I wanted to share with you that. Here are how you can start an online business. Okay, and I'm gonna use Instagram because, like I said, I have a lot of knowledge in Instagram. I've grown two accounts, two over one's got 11,000, and then Sober Vives has about 55,000, and that was all organic and so I just started my business page and I will be growing that as well. So this is what you can do, and especially with Instagram.

Courtney Andersen: 20:37

You, honest a guy, can shoot these reels. And here's the other kick in the face bare pants. You don't wanna show your face on camera? No problem. You wanna know why? Because Instagram in 2024 are favoring faceless accounts. Isn't that crazy? Just because aesthetically right.

Courtney Andersen: 21:01

I mean, if you look at Sober Vives except for, like some of the reels I do, sober Vives was all and I wanted it that way of a theme page where it was. This was something that you looked at, that it reminded you every day. It was bright and happy, it was empowering and it was supportive to you to help you keep going. Especially, too, with my stuff. It's more geared towards the first couple of years of your sobriety, right. And Sober Vives started with in-person stuff that I tried to do, in-person meetups and it was started out of me at AA being like there just has to be something more than this, you know. And then I went online, switched it to online and, like the in-person stuff because of scheduling just didn't work out right. So and then that's branched to what it's branched to. I'm not honest to God. I mean when my book deal came through. If you haven't listened to that episode, go back to listen to the episode where it's. I don't know what number it is, but it just it says my book title in it. If you haven't got to my book yet, please do.

Courtney Andersen: 22:08

Sober Vives a guide to thriving in your first three months without alcohol. I explained that story. My editor was watching me on Instagram and was attracted to my Instagram account originally and then looked at all what I have done in this space, with my coaching, with the podcast, with National Sober Day, with the community that we have all built together and the branding. And she no-transcript. She asked me and with my blog, like that was just from fucking her watching on Instagram. That's why you never know who is watching. You never know who is watching.

Courtney Andersen: 22:48

So this is, if it's in you, to either where you're like or if you need extra income, lick. This shit has gotten extremely expensive the past year, the past couple of years. I should say so, like fucking student loan debts, credit card debts. You want to go travel. You don't just want to be working nine to five the rest of your life and going home and then not being able to afford to go take yourself out to eat. I mean, that is a thing for people where they have to start making extra income. So when you learn skills to help you with the online space, this can bring in extra income. Trust me, I've done it with two and it will happen with this third one, and I say this because I know this with the fact and I understand how this online space works.

Courtney Andersen: 23:39

And listen, if you're like, I'm scared what people think I have felt that too. But if you're scared of specific people, of what they're going to think, then guess what you can do nowadays on social media, especially if you use social media as one of your platforms or if you want to grow your business. You just block them. You just block them. Do you think I have my father looking at my Sober Vibes Instagram account? No, I sure don't. I blocked him and a few other family members a long time ago because I didn't want to hear their opinions. I didn't, I did not, so like no, thank you. We're just, and you guys know, if you listen to LOT, they don't listen to the podcast, which is OK, but so you can block people. So that's the whole thing, and I said that to my friend the other day. She was just like I have a little thing and there's no shame in that. That's a natural human response. So here's how you are going to do it. You can make a six to eight second video. If you're doing anything the other day I did one of me wash my gloves. And again, this is on my new business account and I will link that in the show notes below if you want to come, follow me and see how you can build a business online, specifically using Instagram.

Courtney Andersen: 24:57

You're going to pick a niche right Health, wealth, relationships, beauty, travel, your dog, you guys People are making huge money with their animals. I tell Kim this all the time. I'm like bitch, you better start building an Instagram account about Drexel and monetizing it, because you can become an affiliate and start building traffic to your affiliate links through Instagram. I think she's going to do it. I almost have her. It's just extra income, but that is the point. Travel you can be an affiliate for travel companies. If you are a traveler and flying the friendly skies, it is all possible. So pick a niche. So either go something again like you're passionate about and the most popular ones are health, wealth and relationships. Pick a good company that has an affiliate program.

Courtney Andersen: 25:58

I will say this there is a company I looked at and just to send to Kim and it was a business it was a dog trainer business where they gave you 70% commission if somebody signed up on your link. I'm like, oh my god, so that's for you to decide, right, ok, you need to do a sales funnel. This is a two-page site which you take your prospect to a journey by having them opt into your email list and then taking them to a sales page. And then, of course, email automation, because then you will send email campaigns. If you have opted into anything on my website, and then you see my email funnel. It's my welcome funnel. That's a email campaign, that's an email automation, right? And then from those emails you put in links to your affiliate account or to your business, whatever it may be.

Courtney Andersen: 26:59

Again, going back to, if you were doing a hair dresser who wanted to start then teaching other hairdressers how to build a business on Instagram, then you had a digital product, then you could, in that email sequence, send them to your digital product link. So it's really just about creating the traffic to all of this and boom. But going back to, like I said, if you have a brick or mortar, that's where you need to utilize the online space to showing them what you're doing and then linking for affiliates or your own digital products that you can create. There's a whole thing called the internet. That is this big black, and there are billions of people in this world and they are on the internet.

Courtney Andersen: 27:54

So if you've heard of this before, or if you're like, well, my niche is saturated, it's really not, because, guess what? This is what I have learned through all of these processes all of these years in this People will buy from you because they know they can trust you honestly. That's what it comes down to. So, yes, there are tons of sobriety people out there. I've had other people say to me well, there's a lot in the sobriety field, where they're like there's a lot of sobriety podcasts and I've never had that mindset. One, because I have worked on my mindset for many, many years, but also two, I don't ever feel like there's a lack right, like, well, yeah, there's a lot of sober podcasts, but people are going to tune in because they like what I have to say and what I'm saying resonates with them because we are the same. It's like when I started this. It's like I'm going to talk to people who are most like me and that's what that kind of stuff comes down to. So I don't want you ever, I don't want anyone ever, to feel like they can't do it, because you can do it. You can do anything that you put your mind to, and Deb has always said that to me. Deb is my mother, remember. She has always said that to me and that is something I firmly believe on.

Courtney Andersen: 29:11

It just takes a little work and takes it to figure out, because you do have to go through a process if you are wanting to start a business or want to take your brick and mortar onto the online space. You got to learn a little bit. You really do. You got to learn you got to put some research in there. I mean, currently, the past month, I've been researching on branching into this and finally putting it out there, because I have a passion about this and I really enjoy it. I've had people want to do podcast consulting and I've done it with them Because with the podcast, I have really with the podcast, I learned a little from when I did my first one and that was a great education and then, when I went out on my own with the Silver Vibes podcast in February of 2020, I had to really self-teach myself some stuff and even to hire a podcast, my own podcast, consulting when I first got into this and really understand it to where I wanted to take the show.

Courtney Andersen: 30:24

It's easy that's what I'm just going to keep saying to you that it's easier than you think that it is. It's all about the action and you have to take the action, to put the time in to do it and if you're like, you know what I'm busy and whatnot, it's like I understand that I am busy too. That's why, too, specifically with me with my new page, it's moving more towards, but it's a lot like sober vibes, like doing this without the overwhelm, because it's very easy to be following 25 people and get very overwhelmed with everybody's noise, but if you just follow one and model and listen to what they have to say, and take one mentor, one social media page, one product it's the power of one you will fucking slay the game. You will slay the game. You just have to tune out the other noise and you got to give yourself a little bit more credit than you are currently giving yourself.

Courtney Andersen: 31:28

I will be doing a special podcast series, more into this and getting more in depth, probably like I think I want to say like five to six, but, like I said, it will be a very limited podcast and I think I'm going to be doing this when we're on our break here between seasons. If you want to follow along for more, follow my new Instagram account. Okay, I am on TikTok. I'll put the TikTok on there too, because I know different people do Instagram or TikTok. And then also, too, I have a free guide that breaks this down more of what I just spoke and how really you can do it. You can grab my free guide.

Courtney Andersen: 32:08

Follow me on Instagram if you choose to, and if this is something that you were thinking of in this fucking episode popped up for you today, where you're like this is your sign, you know whether it's you got a lot of debt, right, and I am going to do something about money, because that's another thing. When you wake up in sobriety, you're like your bills are fast I've been very honest about that, so that will be done for down the road but, like whether you are, you know, again in debt, your student loan debts. These student loan debts just came back up in the fall time. You have kids that you want to put them in some programs, but you're like, where is this coming? Like, where is the money going to come from? Right, maybe you just want to go to Costco one day and not worry about how much is in your bank account, or you just want to add to your future, to start fueling your retirement, or go fucking take a trip and live life. Okay, I'm here for it. I support you in that and you know, again, I'm all for this topic of conversation because I love nothing more. Well, there's a lot of things I love, but this particular topic.

Courtney Andersen: 33:28

Even when I did the podcast consulting this year and coaching like it's just amazing to come up with ideas and see those ideas come to light from others, especially in the audience. You want to know why? Because the most fucking creative people I have met in my life have all come from a world of addiction, alcohol use, disorder and then in sobriety and recovery. When they gain that clarity, it just popped off for them and the most intelligent people are you who are listening to this episode, or some smart mother fuckers. That's right, and I say that with confidence and that's not being like you know.

Courtney Andersen: 34:22

Some people could take that as being conceited, but it's really not. It's observation and being in this arena for the last 11 years and just all of the people that I have met of God man, they have all become entrepreneurs in their own way or left their jobs to go do something that aligns with their soul of who they are after they quit drinking alcohol and using drugs, because that's the whole thing. When you start getting out of that and that clarity comes up, you do realize, like dude, I'm not living in alignment anymore, Like that is my old drinking self. That's how I said the first episode of in January, where I was talking about intentions first resolutions. I couldn't do the resolution thing anymore because it reminded me of my old drinking self and didn't feel aligned with who I was today.

Courtney Andersen: 35:16

So that's no different than when you wake up and you're in a career where you're just like, oh, or maybe two, you're staying at home, mom, where you're like I want to start bringing in some money, because I in some of my own worth, because I'm more than just Billy and Harry's mom, like I was a person before this. Right, there's so much. There's so much, so I hope this episode helps you. Today, again, I will put my Instagram and Tic Tac for my account below and then also to for that free guide to help you understand this more of starting a new business and for affiliate marketing and all of that and digital products. Okay, I will talk to you on the next one. Stay safe out there and keep on truckin.